A former VFW building on Harford Road in Parkville will be turned into a community center and church campus.
EPICENTER Community Center will break ground March 25 on the new project, which will include a community cafe, choice-style food pantry, hot showers for people experiencing homelessness, youth programming classrooms, and community green space.
Located at 8123 Harford Road, the property originally served as the Colony Theatre and was later used as VFW Parkville Post 9083.
“This moment represents far more than the start of construction,” said Darrell McDavid, executive director of The EPICENTER Community Center, in a statement. “It reflects years of listening, planning, and partnership. We heard clearly from the Parkville Community about what is needed, and today we move forward with confidence, hope, and a deep sense of responsibility to serve well.”
The EPICENTER at Parkville is being developed in partnership with Mountain Christian Church. The church plans to launch a Parkville campus at the former VFW post, where it hopes to continue its work “feeding the hungry, supporting kids and families, and helping people rebuild their lives,” according to a vision summary linked on the church’s website.
The groundbreaking later this month will mark the launch of the public phase of a $1.1 million initiative to support the building’s community purposes. It is part of a larger $9 million transformation of the property, which the church is currently raising funds for.
Mountain Christian Church has locations in Aberdeen, Abingdon, Edgewood, and Joppa. They operate EPICENTER locations at their Aberdeen, Abingdon, and Edgewood churches. They also operate thrift stores called Tabitha’s House in Fallston and at their Edgewood church, according to their website.
